State Rep. Ehrlich of Marblehead easily reelected

Wednesday

Nov 3, 2010 at 12:01 AMNov 3, 2010 at 3:02 AM

Incumbent state Rep. Lori Ehrlich, D-Marblehead, was easily reelected over her Republican opponent, Kate Kozitza of Swampscott by a margin of ....

Incumbent state Rep. Lori Ehrlich, D-Marblehead, was easily reelected over her Republican opponent, Kate Kozitza of Swampscott by an estimated margin of 65 percent to 35 percent in the overall district, which includes all of Marblehead and Swampscott and two precincts in Lynn.

In Marblehead, the exact vote totals were not known, due to the failure of a voting machine in Precinct 3, which required ballots to be hand counted. The counting was still continuing as midnight approached.

Ehrlich emphasized “civility” and “positivity” in her post-election speech to supporters during a victory party at the Gourmet Garden in Swampscott.

“Those of you who have known me for a while know that even before I ran for office, I often lamented the lack of civility in today’s public discourse,” Ehrlich said. “Since the first time I ran, I promised you that I would run a campaign that would make you proud to join because that matters.

“We never stooped to negative campaigning or personal attacks because it matters that you are proud of your state representative and the campaign we run,” she said.

She thanked supporters several times during the speech.

Straying from her prepared remarks, Ehrlich noted the problems that “robo-calling” campaigners had caused telephone service overloads Monday.

“When I said no to robo-calls, people said I was crazy,” she said, “but you all are all the callers I need. We did it. We rocked!”

Ehrlich closed by promising she will soon be “off and running” for a new term in new House of Representatives on Beacon Hill.

Kozitza statement

Kozitza called Ehrlich as election returns came in and made it clear that Ehrlich would win the race. She later issued a statement, saying, “I think the voter turnout today suggests that democracy really worked in this election. I was brand new to politics and knew it was long odds from the start. But from the beginning I always said that what mattered most was that at the end of this process, voters would feel represented. And the voters have spoken.”